This invention relates to the storage of items and more particularly to the temporary storage of items below a seat or chair.
The ordinary seat or chair does not have any provision for the storage of items. As a result, ordinary items that accompany a person must be placed either below the seat in a disarrayed condition or occupy a separate parcel package that often does not fit under the seat, particularly in congested locations such as a movie theater or stadium.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to facilitate the storage of miscellaneous items, particularly those that are not already enclosed in a container. A further object is to facilitate the storage items such as pocketbooks, glasses and the like which accompany the user to various social and athletic functions.
Another object of the invention is to take advantage of the storage area that is provided below the seat of a user, but is not intended for permanent storage and has no regular provision for storage.
Another object of the invention is to store items in such a way that they do not interfere with passageways, neighboring seats and the like.
A still further object of the invention is to provide for the storage of miscellaneous items at social and athletic functions in a way that does not lead to contamination or confusion. At athletic and social functions beverages and food items are circulated among patrons and there can be inadvertent spillage upon items of personal property.
In addition, in many stadiums and convention halls the regions below chairs or seats are occupied by debris, or may have an accumulation of dirt that could have an adverse effect on items in storage.
Another problem that confronts the attendee at athletic and social events is that an item placed under or beside a seat can be forgotten after the event has concluded.
Accordingly, it is another object of the invention to guard against the inadvertent failure to retrieve items that are temporarily placed under or beside the seat at an athletic or social event.
While the concept of underneath storage is known, the known art has a number of disadvantages. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,527 830 which issued to Robert A. Meyers on Jul. 9, 1985 discloses a storage compartment of fixed size with a seat as an integral part of the storage unit.
Such a unit is not adaptable to a general subseat storage because the storage compartment can be accomodated only by a sub-seat space having prescribed dimensions. In addition, the device duplicates the seat and thus does not have the flexibility that is needed. In particular, there is no way to adjust the storage unit to the space available below an ordinary seat or chair. In effect, there is no more than the combination of a suitcase-like device to which there is a hinged member that serves as a back.
Accordingly, it is a further object of the invention to overcome the difficulties and the shortcomings that are associated with storage devices of the kind exemplified by the prior art.